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A happy marriage : a novel

Enrique and Margaret Sabas have been married for 30 years. Now, Margaret is under hospice care in the final stages of cancer and asks Enrique to control access to her during her final days so that she can say good-bye to a select few on her own terms. Enrique does so, patiently waiting for his own turn. As he waits, he remembers their life together, from their first conversation forward. The story alternates between past and present, contrasting the budding and then mature relationship to the sad reality of its end.Read more...

Abstract:

A Happy Marriage is stunningly candid and revelatory book about what it means for two people to spend a lifetime together.Read more...

Reviews

Editorial reviews

Publisher Synopsis

"Enrique and Margaret are anything but common, distinct both as characters and in the endurance of their love."-Malena Watrous, New York Times Book Review "Poignant and heartbreaking.... Anyone in a relationship will be able to relate."-Craig Wilson, USA Today "Beautiful... Yglesias is a superb and courageous writer.... [A] riveting portrait of enduring love, with all its grand imperfections." -- Karen Karbo, Bookforum "Brave ... instantly compelling." -- Scott Muskin, Minneapolis Star-Tribune "Surprising and deeply affecting... A very brave book indeed." -- Nancy Connors, The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) "Maybe marriage is the oldest story in the world, but in Mr. Yglesias' tender, funny, rueful telling, the lifelong relationship is the story of life itself." -- The Wall Street Journal "A profound deliberation on the nature of love, marriage and the process of dying.... A tour de force... [Yglesias] has found the novel of his life." -- Dinitia Smith, New York Times "Yglesias mixes passion and pain in this deep and searing story of love. With unflinching honesty, he reveals the resilience of the human spirit in the face of illness and loss." -- Jerome Groopman, author of How Doctors Think "Rafael Yglesias's novel -- long and graceful and written to display an intimacy wincingly believable -- is about life, itself, not just one particular marriage. As the book alternates between past and present, we grow, along with the characters: as they jump boundaries, so do we; as they resign themselves to a sad inevitability, we feel viscerally cornered, too. It's a punch-in-the-stomach book, but the sharpness forces us to open our eyes wide. Impressive." -- Ann Beattie, author of Follies "[A] devastatingly raw appraisal of a nearly 30-year marriage...heart-wrenching." -- Publishers WeeklyRead more...